Pathology of electronic health record from the sociological perspective (qualitative research among health experts in 1398)

Technological progress and changes have affected the field of medicine and health. Also, the electronic health record is used for convenience of treatment, prevention and diagnosis, but it has advantages and disadvantages that we have studied them in this research.

Qualitative research methods and Grounded theory  were used for the sociological study of electronic health record, and in order to achieve a comprehensive theory in this field by using the theoretical saturation method, twenty experts in the fields of medicine, policy, sociology and informatics that They were familiar with electronic health records, were selected from the community of experts as the statistical population and by using the three stages of open, axial and selective coding, important concepts and categories were extracted in each stage.

The most important result of the research is multidimensional effects of electronic health record. Electronic health record by reducing emotional interaction and prioritizing registered data reduces the intimacy in the patient- physician relationship, and recording data in the specific political and economic environment of the country bring a fear of social stigma and disclosure, especially when system security, investing, and training employees face some problems, and the constant changes of managers reduce their risk-taking and positive effects.

In order to have a proper system and comprehensive and pervasive use of electronic health record, cultural, managerial and technological changes are necessary. Cultural contextualization in the society and among individuals, risky and efficient management and the use of integrated information systems along with system security can increase efficiency. Moreover, this efficiency will lead to research, development and progress.